"Twenty Chapters..." I muttered. "Great. A deadline for my own existence.
By the ti I looked up, Maya was gone, vanishing right after dropping the world’s most depressing truth bomb.
I leaned back on the couch and stared at the ceiling, trying to count imaginary pages. Twenty Chapters. What even was that supposed to an? How long before the next one flipped, before I...
I groaned, dragging a pillow over my face. "Nope. Not thinking about that."
Still, my brain refused to cooperate. It kept spinning, pulling at the idea like a loose thread.
"Chapters," I mumbled into the pillow. "Not days, not weeks... Chapters."
If this world ran on narrative logic, then that ant the Chapters didn’t move because of ti they moved because of events. The big ones. The dramatic ones. The kind that only happened when the main characters were involved.
I slowly lowered the pillow and stared up at the ceiling again. "Oh no," I whispered. "Every ti sothing happens between them... it counts."
I sat up, running my hands through my hair. "So basically, my existence depends on whether the main couple..."
My words stopped midway as the thought hit .
The main couple?
Auren was supposed to be the male lead, and Lady Celeste was the heroine.
Lucian... was the second male lead.
But...
I froze.
"Lady Celeste..." I whispered. "She never appeared."
I stared at the floor, trying my best to rember the first ti Lady Celeste appeared in the book.
It wasn’t a grand entrance or a noble ball.
It was at... "the lake!"
She’d been sitting there, alone on the stone ledge, her reflection shimring on the water’s surface. The wind had been soft, the scene calm and the perfect start to her story.
That’s where Auren found her. The male lead, frustrated and restless, had gone there to clear his mind. He wasn’t supposed to et anyone that day. But he did.
He t her.
That was how the story began. Their first eting. Their first spark. The mont the entire novel unfolded from.
"I wonder if the scene already happened or not..." I murmured.
The question sat in my chest, heavy and stubborn.
If the story still followed its original flow, then that eting should’ve already happened.
But there hadn’t been a single ripple — no news, no whispers, nothing.
My fingers tightened around the pillow.
"Unless..." I muttered. "It hasn’t happened yet."
The thought tugged at until I couldn’t sit still anymore.
I stood up, pacing a few steps before stopping by the door. "It’s just one visit," I told myself. "Just to see... yup!" I nodded to absolutely no one. "Just to see. Who knows, maybe luck’s on my side..."
If that scene hadn’t happened yet, then... maybe I could see it. Or at least, see if anything felt different.
"Just one visit," I repeated, more to convince myself than anything.
I opened the door, stepping into the hallway and walking slowly, the sound of my footsteps barely a whisper against the floor. The corridor stretched endlessly ahead, lined with tall windows and portraits that seed to stare at like silent witnesses.
"Great," I muttered under my breath as I reached the staircase. "No one in sight."
I started down carefully, glancing left and right just in case soone decided to appear out of nowhere.
Nothing.
I grinned to myself, just a little. "Perfect."
But as I kept going, the echo of my own steps began to sound louder, reminding how ridiculously big this manor actually was. Every hallway felt like it went on forever, every door looked the sa, and the main entrance felt like it was moving further away with every step I took.
By the ti I finally reached the front hall, I was already a little out of breath.
I tiptoed the last few steps, then reached for the handle of the main door. The brass was cold beneath my fingers, and for a split second, I hesitated.
I took a deep breath and pushed it open.
The morning air rushed in, carrying that faint scent of rain that always made the world feel softer. I slipped outside, closing the door carefully behind .
"Okay..." I muttered, glancing toward the far end of the main gate. "How do I call a taxi in this world? Do I... wave? Whistle? Summon it with mana?"
The gate looked ridiculously far.
"Oh gosh," I groaned, pressing a hand to my forehead. "Don’t tell I actually have to walk there."
"May I help you, my lady?"
"Ah—!" I jumped so hard I nearly tripped over my own feet, spinning around to find a man standing a few steps behind .
He was dressed neatly in a driver’s uniform. Black vest, cap tucked under his arm and wore the sort of politely neutral expression.
"Oh–gosh!" I stamred, pressing a hand over my chest. "You scared ! You can’t just... appear like that!"
He bowed quickly, his voice calm and formal. "My apologies, my lady. I didn’t an to startle you."
I exhaled, trying to pretend my heart wasn’t racing. "Well, you succeeded anyway."
He straightened, then hesitated. "Are you... heading sowhere?"
"Yes," I said, too quickly. "I an—yes, just out. For a bit."
He nodded slowly, as if trying to decode whatever I just said. "Lord Lucian did not ntion any travel plans for you this morning."
"He wouldn’t," I said with a quick, awkward laugh. "Because this is... spontaneous!"
"Spontaneous," he repeated flatly.
"Exactly." I nodded like that explained everything. "A very spontaneous, harmless morning outing. Nothing suspicious at all."
"Should I call Lord Lucian first, my lad—"
"No!" I blurted, raising a hand so fast it startled him. "Err... I an... no need." I forced a nervous smile. "Lucian’s the one who called earlier, actually. He... asked to go to the lake. He’s there."
The driver blinked, clearly trying to process that. "Lord Lucian... is at the lake?"
"Yes," I said quickly, nodding far too many tis. "Exactly. That lake. The only lake worth being at. Very important eting, very urgent, can’t be late."
There was a long pause. Then, to my imnse relief, he bowed slightly. "Should I send you there, my lady?"
"Yes! Yes, please," I said, my voice almost too bright. "Let’s go."
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